PANICLE RICE MITE adults are clear to straw-colored, oval in shape and are approximately 1/100 of an inch long. Immature PRM are clear to straw-colored and about ½ the size of adults. Eggs are clear in color, oval-shaped, and about 1/3 the size of adults. An entire lifecycle can be completed in 7-21 days depending on temperature conditions.

Facts:

The panicle rice mite (PRM), Steneotarsonemus spinki Smiley, has recently been reported in the continental United States. Significant crop losses have been attributed to this mite, particularly in the presence of sheath rot and bacterial panicle blight, in many tropical rice growing areas of the world.

How you can manage panicle rice mites:

Scout for PRM by looking for the symptoms associated with bacterial panicle blight and sheath rot.

Look for a cinnamon, yellow or chocolate-brown discolored lesion on the leaf sheath that does not have a distinct edge.